Chain of Command, Part II

"There are 4 lights."

A 4 second performance. The last time Captain Picard / Patrick Stewart pronounces the words has to be one of the greatest acting performances ever. He must have spoken to a P.O.W. before he did this bit to know what it's like. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1npL-TNFOAQ

This episode is much better than part 1 as its focus is on Picard and his captor Gul Madred. Their back and forth is masterful and the B plot back on board the Enterprise plays out smoothly. Riker isn't wrong and Jellico isn't right. They both lean into their characters perfectly though one does wish Riker had moved on to captain some other starship when he had the chance.

Turns out you can easily fit 500 anti-matter mines in the back of a class-2 shuttle and it'll look like you are only carrying eight to ten. Titan's turn sounds like a lot of fun and I hope that becomes a real thing in some distant future for our species. There does seem to be some confusion over the number of lights in Picard's torture chamber but reasonable people can disagree on these sorts of things.

To complete our study of Federation leadership compare and contrast how much composure Picard displays while being tortured, versus how little Jellico displays while at the negotiating table. They put their most skilled diplomat in harms way and a war monger at the helm of their most powerful ship. What does the Federation leadership really want? Are they completely incompetent or outright malicious? I suppose it doesn't matter. If an entire fleet of Cardi ships can be spooked into retreat by a few mines they don't deserve Minos Corva anyway. Perhaps at some point in the future they will makes some friends that will teach them how to effectively challenge federation power.

Torture is a common plot device in American media. It is powerfully provocative. But while most media portray torture, falsely, as effective and fast though messy, TNG portrayts it truthfully as unreliable and spoiling of potential intelligence as well as a horrible crime.

Besides the incredible integrity shown in this episode so characteristic of the Star Trek franchise, and TNG especially, this episode contains superb acting and writing. The primary characters all appear to have depth and aren't easily distinguished as the "evil enemy" and the "great hero". It really goes to show that expensive production costs are not required for great dramatic performance.

Now this is exactly the reason people remember "Chain of Command"; the superior second part. And right from minute one, it's hard to watch because of the subject matter: Captain Picard being tortured by a Cardassian officer (David Warner) while Jellico (Ronny Cox) is gumming up the works on the Enterprise. But it's not the physical abuse that's so effective here, rather the psychological results. It's miserable to see Picard's systematic dehumanization and just as hard to see him in such a weakened state. It's the acting here that really sells this' Warner offers up one of the great TNG villains in a performance that varies from affectionate to sheer menace. And Stewart is his equal, no question. Even Ronny Cox turns the one-note Jellico into someone interesting.

I've seen this before (several times) and it never once fails to suck me right in. It's cold, vicious and undeniably powerful.

10/10

Captain Picard is in the hands of the Cardassians, whilst Captain Jellico continues to run the Enterprise in a dictatorial style.

This is one of the classic episodes of Star Trek with a great double plot of Picard's torture by Gul Madred and Jellico's time aboard Enterprise.

Jellico's command continues to be a fascinating story of the ship run in a strict military style by a direct and controlling leader. His style is domination and there are numerous great scenes of his combative exchanges with characters. The best moment for me is his cap-in-hand return to Riker where the two exchange honest opinions of each other. Ronny Cox is excellent once more and Jonathan Frakes is also great.

The stars of the show are Patrick Stewart and David Warner in their intense scenes of torture. There is nothing gratuitous about what happens but a lot of the psychological and physical torment is conveyed through Stewart's great performance. Warner is suitably cold and malevolent in his portrayal.

It is quite reminiscent of 'Nineteen Eighty-Four' with Madred's questioning style. He tries to break Picard to the point he might do and say anything to avoid suffering. This, in an extreme way, parallels the will Jellico has for domination over subordinates and enemies, and both stories parallel each other superbly. As nasty as it is, it ends in a far more upbeat way than Winston Smith's experience at the Ministry of Love.

It is not perfect. I think the notion of Riker suddenly being the best pilot around is a lazy plot contrivance, but as it leads to one of the best scenes in the episode it is forgivable.

This is one of the best acted episodes of the franchise. Stewart, Warner, and Cox are all fantastic as you would expect with this kind of material. Also regular cast members like Jonathan Frakes are at the top of their game.

Visually everything works perfectly for the intended purpose. The torture scenes are not particularly violent, but the use of lighting, stripping Stewart naked and the set design of Madred's office have the psychological affect of making it feel quite brutal.

'Chain of Command part 2' is not a pleasant experience, but sadly neither is life for people who endure suffering at the hands of others. One job it does well is set the scene for 'Deep Space Nine' where these themes and narratives involving the Cardassians are expanded.

It's a 9.5/10 for me but I round upwards.